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Jim Crowley was left with a tough decision to make on which horse to ride in the Dubai Kahayla Classic on Dubai World Cup night after Al Zahir won the Group 1 Emirates Championship in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.

The former British champion jockey will have to decide between Al Zahir and Barnamaj, winner of the Al Maktoum Challenge Round 2, to steer in the Kahayla Classic, the purebred Arabian showpiece on World Cup night.

Ali Rashid Al Raihe, the trainer of both horses belonging to Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid for whom Crowley is the retained first jockey, is likely to run the two horses on on March 31.

“After this race, I think he deserves to be there,” the Grandstand Stables trainer following Al Zahir’s victory in the Dh1 million race run over the 2,200-metre distance.

Crowley had to deal with the widest draw of the 16 runners, but settled Al Zahir in middle of the pack and made smooth headway before going clear with 600m remaining to win by five and-a-half lengths from Jean de Roaulle’s newcomer Thabit and the Eric Lemartinel-trained Abu Alabyad.

“Looking at the race and drawn inside the widest Gate No 16 and having to go wide on the first bend, he’s such a class horse to get into a nice position the whole way around and won very well indeed,” Crowley said.

“He’s a good horse, a super horse, but it all depends on how he handles the dirt at Meydan. He has to take his chance in the Kahayla Classic. I have a tough decision with Barnamaj who loves the dirt.”

Al Raihe believes Al Zahir can handle both the turf and the dirt, and that both horses can challenge for the prize.

“Al Zahir has proved he’s a very good horse on the turf and I’m sure he can handle the dirt if the kick-back can be avoided,” he said.